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AS THE MORNING DAWNED, Theo congratulated himself on having avoided Rose successfully since the embarrassing incident down in the hot springs. He told himself to take comfort in the time he’d had to reflect on what he would say to her, and how she would react, because there was no avoiding her on this day.
Theo prayed for extra mercy that morning.
He heard a knock at the door to his and answered it, fearing the devil was already going to give him grief.
When he saw Roderick’s rust-colored beard and large girth in the doorway, he almost sank to his knees in gratitude.
“Sir,” Roderick greeted. “Captain Locke and Lannister are getting the horses ready now. We will be ready to depart as soon as everyone is ready.”
“Excellent,” Theo said. “That’s good news.”
“Good news for the Princess,” Roderick said. “But I for one will miss the comforts of the castle. Crystal Lake is a beautiful place.”
“Your accommodations were to your liking?”
“Oh, yes,” Roderick nodded. “It was much easier to slip out to the town at night than I thought it would be.”
“Did you and the others learn anything interesting about what’s going on in the woods?” Theo asked. “I know King Derick has been looking into it, but he has a lot of other concerns.”
“He has quite a few loyal men to delegate the task to,” Roderick said. “I talked with many of them while I was in town.”
“What about the city residents? I know there are places you can get into that he couldn’t. At least, not without a good disguise.”
“True enough. The King does have some subjects who are more than reluctant to face the unification of Einish and Crystal Lake. He will likely have to deal with later.” Roderick chuckled. “But besides that, there’s not much I did find out about the trouble between the countries at their borders. All I have been able to discover for sure is that it is connected with the Magdust trade.”
“That’s what Philip told me and Rose,” Theo said.
“I’ve heard some other rumors, but I could not verify them. I have to admit I’m a little hesitant to share them with you.”
“What? Why?”
“There are rumors that Magdalina herself has been spotted in the forest between Einish and Rhone, close to where Crystal Lake also borders the two.”
“We will be going right through that area,” Theo said. “At least, according to Ethan, that is.”
“Yes. I don’t want you or the Princess to get your hopes up.”
“What about Everon?” Theo asked, thinking of the large, brutish fairy who had killed his parents. Despite his upbringing, Theo felt his blood hum with vengeful anticipation.
“He has not been spotted, just Magdalina,” Roderick said. “Again, that was just a rumor, and I have no solid consensus on it.”
Theo’s optimism plummeted. “Oh.”
“I’m curious,” Roderick mused, “how she would have been able to come into this place at all, though.”
“What do you mean?” Theo asked.
“From what the people I talked to told me, the pixies who reside in Crystal Lake have no love of fairies, that’s for sure, but they have had a peaceful coexistence for years.”
“I remember Mary saying something about the pixies,” Theo said. “She said they were friendly.”
“Not a lot of them, really. I was able to learn more about them when I was in town. Pixies have, in the past, used their own spells and power to keep fairies, even those such as Magdalina, from moving onto their territory. So it is interesting that the Magdust trade has expanded to the Wandering Caverns.”
“What do you think it means? Based on what you’ve heard?”
“As I see it, there are only a few things it could be.” Roderick sighed. “It’s possible the pixies are working with the traders, or they have been ambushed by the traders themselves.”
Theo frowned. “But how would the traders overpower them?”
“Magic has rules, remember?” Roderick stroked his beard thoughtfully. “Pixies have their own rules, different from the fairies; it’s part of the reason they don’t live together very often. If a human was able to control a pixie, it would be easy for them to attack the fairies and also move in on the pixies’ territory. It also makes it easier to make Magdust when you already have magic, from what I heard down by the prison.”
“I’ve never thought about what it takes to make Magdust,” Theo admitted. “I just knew the fairies are killed for their power. I know there are ways to kill fairies, but butchering them for their power is a whole different thing. I didn’t think about that before.”
Roderick snorted. “Well, you wouldn’t, would you? The idea of Magdust is already unpleasant enough.”
“The Magdust trade goes back many years,” Roderick said. “I’ve listened to a lot of people’s stories, and most of them agree that the fairies have become endangered because of Rhone’s first leader. He was the one, they tell me, that first used it to gain power.”
“That’s true. Titania, Queen Lucia’s daughter, told us as much when the rest of us were looking for her,” Theo said. “She said Benedict used the Magdust to gain power over Lucia. Once she was out of the way, he was able to establish himself as the ruler of Rhone, rather than just a knight.”
“Yes, but he was far from the only person who knew how to make the Magdust,” Roderick said. “So other people knew about it and how to make it.”
Theo thought of his mother, whose face seemed blurry in his memory after more than decade without her. He thought of his father, too, who was more knight than father in his memory. “I can agree to that,” he said.
Roderick sighed. “It can be profitable. Even if you are not a king, you could live like one if you were able to sell enough.”
“I think that’s why my father was in it,” Theo admitted quietly.
He thought back to the unpleasant conversation he’d had with his older brother the last time he had been in Rhone. Thad had told him the truth of what he’d found from their Uncle Thom, who had also been killed by Everon and his cronies.
Of all the people from his past, it was his uncle that remained completely real against the passage of time. The breadth of his shoulders, the warmth of his laugh, the blood splattered on his beard and hands and back as he tried to get Theo and Thad out of their home the night his parents died. All of Uncle Thom still seemed very vivid in comparison to the memories of his parents.
They walked down the hall some, when Theo stopped by the tapestry of Queen Lucia. The wall drapery, with all its advanced weaving and skill, made him wonder. He reached out and grabbed Roderick’s arm. “Do you know someone managed to weave the Magdust into fabric?”
“I’ve heard some tales. Magdust was used by some sorcerers for any number of things.” Roderick looked up at the tapestry alongside Theo. “Why? Do you think this one has some in it?”
“It looks a lot like one my mother had hanging in our house,” Theo said. “I’d love to know if it does.”
“How did you destroy it?”
“My uncle burned it,” Theo said.
“Makes sense,” Roderick said with a nod.
“What do you mean?” Theo asked. “Why would that work?”
“Fairies are very, very cautious around fire,” Roderick said. “They are creatures of creation, you know. Mary is proof of that, isn’t she? You can see that they have no trouble creating something new, or even making something different, but they do not use the power to destroy. When they need light, they usually collect sunlight or even moonlight.”
“That’s true.” Theo nodded. It would explain why fairy magic would not work around dragons and their blood.
“Fire, on the other hand, is a natural destroyer.” Roderick shrugged. “But I’m not sure King Derick would be happy if you burned up his tapestry and there was nothing wrong with it.”
Theo did not like to think about it, but he had an idea. “Maybe Rose can use her sword to find out if there’s Magdust in it somehow.”
“No harm in trying,” Roderick agreed. “We’d likely get better results than trying to burn it, if nothing else.”
“There might be no harm in trying,” Theo said, “but I’m hoping there is no harm in asking. I wouldn’t want to inconvenience Rose.”
“She does have a temper,” Roderick agreed. “I properly pity anyone who has the gall to make her upset.”
“Me, too,” Theo muttered. “Me, too.”
Rose already had a list of reasons to argue with Theo over something, so she was even more unhappy when she opened her door in the morning and there was Roderick, who Theo had sent to her room in order to summon her to his side.
“I’m in charge,” Rose reminded Roderick. “Theo doesn’t have the right to order me to come see him.”
“It was a poor choice of words on my part, My Lady.”
Rose scoffed. “Rose, please. You know I hate formality between friends.”
“We are friends then?”
“I guess so,” Rose told him, giving him one of her smiles. She appreciated that his cheeks dulled with a pleasing flush; Roderick was smart enough to know that her trust was hard won.
Now, it is time to remind Theo of that as well.
But despite her anger, Rose forced herself to act normally when she saw him. “What did you want, Theo, that was so important that you ordered me away from breakfast?”
“You haven’t eaten yet,” Theo told her easily enough. “I know you well, Rose. You pack your breakfast to go and eat it while we’re on the road.”
“For your information, I was going to go to the dining hall before you sent for me.”
“But not to eat. Just to get food. It’s still different.”
She glared at him, no doubt angry because he was right. “Well, now that you’ve ruined my appetite, what do you need me for?”
Theo nodded toward the tapestry. “I wanted to see if there was any Magdust in this design,” he said.
“Why would you think it does?” Rose scowled. She glanced up at the tapestry once more, where Queen Lucia’s gaze was just as imposing as it had been the day before.
“My mother had one that carried Magdust,” Theo told her quietly. “It was very similar to this one.”
Rose raised her eyebrows at that. She sighed, and some part of her had to admit she could not keeping looking for a fight to pick with him.
They had work to do, both of them, and bickering every step of the way there was not going to help. And Theo did not talk much about his parents or his past before he came to Rhone’s capital. If he thought this was important, she had a duty to comply.
“What do you think we can do?” Rose asked. “I talked with Juliette about this tapestry yesterday. She said it was a gift from one of the Einish court ambassadors.”
“I was thinking your sword might be able to do something,” Theo said. “Remember when you were jousting with Marsor on Maltia? You were able to shatter his sword and find the stash of Magdust the hilt had.”
Rose pulled out her sword. “I’d hate to cut this,” she said. “I mean, if it’s just a normal tapestry.”
“Well, the fairy magic should still respond to it, right?” Roderick asked. “Just use your sword to touch it gently.”
Feeling silly, Rose pressed the tip of her sword against the tapestry.
For a moment, nothing happened. All of them seemed to be holding their breaths, waiting for something to happen.
Then, slowly, a small pink-and-green glow emitted from the point where the sword and the fabric came together.
“I was right.” Theo’s expression was grim and glad at the same time. “There is Magdust in it.”
“We’d better tell the King,” Rose said. She pulled her sword away from the tapestry. Immediately, the shimmering cloud of dust disappeared back into the folds of the fabric. “He needs to get rid of this, before he’s accused of helping the Magdust trade flourish.”
“I’ll go and get him,” Roderick offered. “You two can stay here.” He was already sprinting down the hallway when Rose started to object.
“No, that’s alright—” Rose tried to stop him, wanting to insist that she would go and get the King, that it would be her great pleasure, that she should be the one to break the bad news. But it was too late.
She was forced to be alone with Theo.
I hate this. This situation would have never bothered me before.
“So, did you get enough sleep last night?” Theo asked. His tone, inquiring and calm, was the same as it had always been, as he asked her the question he must have asked her a million times or more.
It irritated Rose to no end. “Yes,” she replied, determined to show him that two could play the normal game. “How about you? How is your back?”
“It is getting better.”
His tone was the same, Rose noticed, but he wasn’t looking at her.
“You said your mother had one of these?” Rose asked, gesturing to the tapestry.
“She said that my father won it at a tournament,” Theo said. “She had a gift for weaving herself though. I remember she used to spent a lot of time at her spinning wheel, before the King outlawed and destroyed them.”
Rose only nodded. “Juliette told me that there was a famous weaver who made these and sold them at tournaments, so it fits.”
“Is the weaver still alive, do you think?” Theo asked. “We might be able to find out more about it from her.”
“Well, Juliette said she died. But she had children. And there’s always the possibility she had an apprentice or her teacher could still be alive. Tradesmen and artisans of all kinds would have apprentices. Even Sophie gets excited when we’re at a place where she can learn about a new tool or technique.” Rose sighed. “I’m actually worried she might not want to be a knight at all, considering her interest still lies in blacksmithing.”
“She’s still a good fighter. And a good squire. Not all squires make it to knighthood,” Theo reminded her gently. “Even though I know you wanted her to succeed as a lady knight.”
“It’s fine,” Rose said, waving the issue aside. “I guess we need to be more concerned with the weaver right now than Sophia’s trade. Juliette said she got this from someone at the Einish court. We can ask around when we get there.”
“Maybe Isra will be able to tell us something, too.”
Rose nodded. “Maybe. She hasn’t sent any letters back lately.”
“She knows we’re close.”
“True.” Rose glanced out the nearby window, looking up at the clouds. “But I miss Virtue.”
Her gyrfalcon, with his large wings and his soulful eyes, acted as a messenger between her worlds. She decided to herself that when she saw him again, she would take a few hours and go hawking with him.
“Rose.”
She flinched; the past few moments had been nice, almost normal. Hearing Theo say her name ruined it.
“What?” she bit back.
“I talked with Roderick some,” he said. “He and the others were able to find some information for us.”
“Oh?” Rose lost her defensiveness immediately. “Anything interesting?”
“There are rumors—just rumors—that Magdalina has been spotted in the Einish forest.”
Rose’s hand tightened around her sword hilt. “That means that we might ... ”
“We might get a chance to fight her,” Theo concluded.
“I’m ready.” “I’m more than willing to engage Magdalina in battle. She might have caught me by surprised at my birthday party this past year, but she’s no match for me with a sword.”
“Especially one with dragon’s blood,” Theo agreed. “She won’t be able to stand up to that.”
Rose nodded. “I could finally be free,” she whispered.
“That’s right.” Theo gave her a grin, meeting her eyes for the first time. “And then you’ll be able to sing again.”
Rose flushed.
“You never did sing for me,” Theo reminded her. “You still have to do that.”
Rose scowled. Just when I thought things were starting to go alright, she thought bitterly. She crossed her arms, folding her sword underneath her arm. “Can you just forget about that? I mean, after yesterday’s incident, we should be even.”
Pure hatred, mostly for herself, throbbed through her, drowning her in self-inflicted rage. She saw the change in Theo’s expression immediately, and she knew he was not happy with her remark, either.
“Fine,” he said. “We’ll call it even.”
“Good,” Rose snapped back. “And I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
“There’s no need for you to be a brat about it,” Theo told her. “Your behavior is hardly mature.”
Rose stuck her tongue out at him.
Before Theo could reply, Roderick and Derick came into sight. Juliette was not far behind the two of them.
Rose greeted her with a smile, but it was not enough to ease the worry she saw on Juliette’s expression.
“Rose,” Derick said. “Good morning. Starting the day’s adventures early, are you?”
“Apparently,” Rose said, trying to match the chipper tone of the King’s, even though her mood was far from cheerful, and the news she had for them even less so.
When Rose placed the tip of her sword back against the tapestry, Juliette gasped in horror.
“What do we do?” Derick asked.
“Burn it,” Theo said. “I know from experience it’s the easiest way of getting rid of it.”
“What about the baby?” Juliette asked. “Will the baby be alright?”
“What about it?” Rose looked over at her. Juliette reached out and took Derick’s hand for support.
“If we get rid of the tapestry, it wouldn’t hurt the baby, will it?” Juliette looked distressed. “Ambassador Rolez told me that it was supposed to bring good luck for babies and their health. He said it was supposed to protect our children.”
“That’s likely just superstition,” Rose said, watching as Juliette put her arms protectively over her tummy again. Rose struggled to feel sympathy for Juliette, but she was unable to muster much. The Queen’s reaction seemed too much like an overreaction. Wasn’t Juliette the one, after all, who had told her before she didn’t believe the tapestry was actually magic? Why would she worry that getting rid of it would somehow harm her child?
Rose knew she was not the one to handle this anymore. She immediately looked to Theo. He was better with this sort of thing, she thought. “Theo?”
Theo immediately jumped forward and began comforting Juliette, while Roderick and Derick began to take the tapestry down from the wall.
It wasn’t long before Theo sent Juliette down to the chapel, along with Derick to support her, and the tapestry was burning in a nearby fireplace.
Rose watched it burn, her eyes following the ballooning puffs of pink and green shimmers. “I guess the Magdust trade is more complicated than just transporting it in its powder form.”
Theo stoked the fire with a poker. “If it makes you feel better,” he said, “it has been going on for decades now. It won’t be an easy fix.”
“If it’s been going on for decades, why hasn’t Rhone been able to do much about it?” Rose asked. “Isn’t that why Magdalina and her forces are so angry with the people of Rhone?”
“Wars like this are cyclical,” Theo replied. “They come and go, almost like the tides. Where there is the opportunity to engage in profitable activity, there are people who indulge it in. And then there are people who educate themselves and others on how to stay away from it. It is a war on the individual that has consequences for the whole community.”
“Do you think once Magdalina is no longer a concern, we will still face this problem?” Rose asked.
“There will be years of repair that we will need to do with the fairyfolk who are upset with us,” Theo said. “Magdalina is only one symptom of a larger problem.”
Rose smiled sadly. “So, yes then?”
He nodded.
She sighed. “It seems too big of a problem.”
“Not when we can face it together, Rosary,” Theo said. “And that is something you don’t have to worry about.”
He stuffed the poker back in its place and stood up. Rose was about to thank him for his kindness when he added, “Even if I did happen to see you soaking wet, half-clothed in your undergarments.”
“What’s that about seeing Rose in her undergarments?” Philip asked as he came into the room.
Rose scowled at Theo. “You’re the worst,” she hissed, angry at him all over again. If he was getting back at her for her earlier remarks, he could not have done a better job, she thought bitterly.
Philip looked surprised. “So something actually happened? What’s the story?” he asked. “Tell me.”
“No,” Rose snapped. “It’s none of your concern.”
“Come on, Rose—”
“No.” She huffed and then stormed toward the door. “Now that the Magdust has been taken care of, let’s go say our final goodbyes to your brother, Philip. If we want to get to Einish sooner rather than later, we better get going.”
She didn’t wait around for their reactions; she felt their lingering stares as she headed out of the room and down the hall.
Rose briefly glanced back at the blank wall, where Queen Lucia’s tapestry had hung only moments before. The brocade of the Queen’s portrait was gone, but she still felt the shadow of Lucia’s soft and condemning judgment as she made her way out of the palace.